A Song to Creating Wisdom

Representative Text

1 Eternal Wisdom, thee we praise,
Thee the creations sing:
With thy loved name, rocks, hills, and seas,
And heaven's high palace ring.

2 Thy hand, how wide it spreads the sky,
How glorious to behold!
Tinged with a blue of heavenly dye,
And starred with sparkling gold.

3 There thou hast bid the globes of light
Their endless circuits run;
There the pale planet rules the night;
The day obeys the sun.

4 If down I turn my wandering eyes
On clouds and storms below,
Those under-regions of the skies,
Thy numerous glories show.

5 The noisy winds stand ready there
Thy orders to obey;
With sounding winds they sweep the air,
To make thy chariot way.

6 But the mild glories of thy grace,
Our softer passions move;
Pity divine in Jesus' face
We see, adore, and love.


Source: The Voice of Praise: a collection of hymns for the use of the Methodist Church #60

Author: Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts was the son of a schoolmaster, and was born in Southampton, July 17, 1674. He is said to have shown remarkable precocity in childhood, beginning the study of Latin, in his fourth year, and writing respectable verses at the age of seven. At the age of sixteen, he went to London to study in the Academy of the Rev. Thomas Rowe, an Independent minister. In 1698, he became assistant minister of the Independent Church, Berry St., London. In 1702, he became pastor. In 1712, he accepted an invitation to visit Sir Thomas Abney, at his residence of Abney Park, and at Sir Thomas' pressing request, made it his home for the remainder of his life. It was a residence most favourable for his health, and for the prosecution of his literary… Go to person page >

Text Information

Notes

Eternal Wisdom, Thee we praise. I. Watts. [Praise to the Creator.] 1st published in his Horae Lyricae, 1705, as "A Song to Creating Wisdom," in 18 stanzas of 4 lines, divided into five parts, and repeated in later editions of the same, and in Watts's complete Works. Centos from this poem, all beginning with the first stanza, are numerous, specially in the American hymn-books. J. Wesley set the example by giving 12 stanzas in his Psalms & Hymns, 3rd ed., 1743. This arrangement was republished in the Wesleyan Hymn Book, 1780, No. 217 (revised ed. 1875, No. 226), and in several other collections. Usually, however, the centos are much shorter than this, from 4 to 6 stanzas being the rule.

--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)

Tune

KENSINGTON (Braine)


AZMON

Lowell Mason (PHH 96) adapted AZMON from a melody composed by Carl G. Gläser in 1828. Mason published a duple-meter version in his Modern Psalmist (1839) but changed it to triple meter in his later publications. Mason used (often obscure) biblical names for his tune titles; Azmon, a city south of C…

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DUNDEE (Ravenscroft)

DUNDEE first appeared in the 1615 edition of the Scottish Psalter published in Edinburgh by Andro Hart. Called a "French" tune (thus it also goes by the name of FRENCH), DUNDEE was one of that hymnal's twelve "common tunes"; that is, it was not associated with a specific psalm. In the Psalter Hymnal…

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Timeline

Media

The Cyber Hymnal #1395
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  • Noteworthy Composer score (NWC)
  • XML score (XML)

Instances

Instances (101 - 196 of 196)
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Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs, Original and Selected. (14th stereotype ed.) #190

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Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs, Original and Selected. (7th ed.) #S5

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Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs #B190

Sabbath School and Social Hymns of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of the U.S.A. #d59

Sacred Melodies #d67

Sacred poetry #d99

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Sacred Poetry #aH.LXI

Sacred Poetry #d98

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Sacred Poetry #H.LXI

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Seamen's Hymns #12

Seamen's Hymns and Devotional Assistant #d150

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Select Hymns, The Third Part of Christian Psalmody. 3rd ed. #aa3

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Select Hymns #3

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Social Psalmist #12

Songs for the New Life #d136

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Songs for the Sanctuary, or Hymns and Tunes for Christian Worship #235

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Songs for the Sanctuary; or Psalms and Hymns for Christian Worship (Baptist Ed.) #235

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Songs for the Sanctuary; or, Psalms and Hymns for Christian Worship (Words only) #235

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Songs for the Sanctuary #235

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Songs for the Sanctuary #235

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Songs for the Sanctuary #235

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Songs of the Church #143

Supplement to Watts #d110

The American Repository of Sacred Music #d41

The American Seaman's Hymn Book #d55

The American Tune Book (Carmina Sacra, enlarged) #d91

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The Baptist Harp #192

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The Baptist Hymn and Tune Book for Public Worship #145

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The Baptist Hymn and Tune Book, for Public Worship #71.145

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The Baptist Hymn Book #145

The Baptist Hymn Book, in Two Parts #d149

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The Baptist Hymn Book #63

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The Baptist Hymn Book #32

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The Baptist Praise Book #187

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The Baptist Psalmody #36

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The Centenary Singer #30

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The Chapel hymn book, with tunes #100

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The Child's Hymn Book #16

The Choralist #d80

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The Christian Harmonist #57

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The Christian Harmonist #63

The Christian Hymn Book #d146

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The Christian Hymn Book #112

The Christian Hymn Book. 7th ed. #d149

The Christian Psalmist #d158

The Christian Psalmist (Numeral ed.) 10th ed., 1st rev. ed. #d86

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The Christian Psalmist; or, Watts' Psalms and Hymns #9

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The Christian Psalmist #7

The Christian Psalter #d110

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The Christian's Harp #44

The Church Hymn Book #d114

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The Clifton Chapel Collection of "Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs" #35

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The Congregational Hymn Book #43

TextScoreAudio

The Cyber Hymnal #1395

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The Disciples' Hymn Book #205

The Friends' Hymnal #d126

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The Friends' Hymnal, a Collection of Hymns and Tunes for the Public Worship of the Society #a77

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The Harp #73

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The Harp. 2nd ed. #a73

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The Hartford Selection of Hymns from the Most Approved Authors #XX

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The Hartford Selection of Hymns #XX

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The Heart and Voice #94b

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The Jubilee Harp #778

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The Lyrica #13

The Modern Psalmist #d58

The National Baptist Hymn Book #d130

The National Baptist Hymn Book #ad130

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The National Baptist Hymnal #97

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The New Congregational Hymn and Tune Book, for Public, Social and Private Worship #267

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The Otterbein Hymnal #89

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The People's Hymnal #89

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The Psalmist #127

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The Psalmist #127

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The Psalmody #143

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The Psalms and Hymns of Dr. Watts #748

The Psalms of David ... New ed. #d56

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The Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs of the Rev. Isaac Watts, D. D. #D3

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The Revivalist #250

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The Sabbath Hymn and Tune Book #117a

The Sabbath Hymn Book. Baptist ed. #d214

The Sacred Lyre #d76

The Saints' Harp #d233

The Saints' Hymnal #d74

The Service of Praise #d76

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The Standard Church Hymnal #132

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The Students' Hymnal #3

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The Students' Hymnal #3

The Vestry Hymn Book #d103

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The Virginia Selection of Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs #30

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The Voice of Praise #60

Universalist Hymn Book #d108

Pages

Exclude 195 pre-1979 instances
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